Improvement in skates



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HORACE l5. HOOKER, OF ROCHlIS'IER, YORK. Letters Patent No. 82,952, dated October 13, 1868; antedated October 6, 1868.

mROVElV-[ENT IN' SKATES.

The Schedule referred to in these LettersPatent and making part of the same.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, HORACE B. Hooknn, of the city of Rochester, in the State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improved Skate; and I do :hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, making part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a side view,

Figure 2 is a top view,

Figure 3 is a transverse sectional View of the clamp of the toe-plate.

Like letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

The nature of this invention will be fully understood by the drawings and specification.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I willv describe its construction and operation.`-

I make my skate of steel, having the toe, A, bent sutlieiently baok towards the heel to receive a plate, B, and to form a spring to sustain the foot. The plate B has two transverse holes, a, and the part between the holes is depressed, so that the toe A will pass through both; and it also has two or more holes, c, to make it longitudinally adjustable, through which a screw is put into the toe' A.

lput, oneaoh side of the plate B, a self-adj usting clamp, G, the perpendicular portion of which may be slightly bent inward at the top.

On the rear end ofthe skate I put a heel-plate, H, which is sustained by three posts, F, fastened .in the skate, and extending, one to the back ofthe plate H, and one to each corner of the front of the plate H.

The plate H has a ilange, q, infront, and on top of the flange, twol spurs,

el, areformed, running back parallel with the plate.

To the ends' of the liange q I attach aV bail, D, which extends around the heel of the boot. A portion of the bail D on both sides is twisted into a spiral spring, shown at b,- and on the rear part of the bail, I put a cam, v.

The object of this invention is to make a skate that can be easily adjusted to the boot, and at the same time have a yielding tendency as the weight of the person bears on it.

Its operation is such that when the foot is placed on the heel and toe-plates, a small hole being made in the front part of the heel, receives the spurs d; the bail D is then pulled up on th heel, and the handle ofthe cam o is raised upwards, and 'astens the skate on the boot.

, The clamps G on the toe-plate being adiustablelongiftudinally, they yield to tbe shape of the sole of the boot. The toe-plates-B being also longitudinally ad justable by the screw-holes c, they will lit djerentshaped soles of the boots. vBy the arrangement oi the posts F, shown in the drawing, they form abraoe and support to eaeh other.

The bail D is made large or small, by the spiral portion d. This can be done by making itin two parts, and holding them together by a serew and clamp, but I prefer this arrangement.

The toe A is formed so that it will yield to the weight of the person, and thereby give 'a springing tendency, which is desirable in this class of skates, or a post can be put between the toe A and runner of the skate, thus making the toe-plate rigid.

What I claim as my invention, and wish to secure by Letters Patent, is,-

l. A skate, having a heebplate, H, with its flange q and spurs d, in combination with the bail D, and cam o, all acting eonjointly, as and for the'purposes herein set forth.

2. The tripod heel-plate support, composed of the posts F, as herein described.

3. The adjustable toe-plate B, in combination with the self-adjusting clamps G, as and for the purposes shown.

H. B. HOOKER Witnesses:

IRA A. HEBBARD, Jas. LORENZO GAGE. 

